Christ has Ascended! From Earth to Heaven! Alleluia!

We are within the Octave of Ascension for most of this week, and are praying the Novena to the Holy Spirit through this Saturday. We are near the end of the entire Paschal season. There is a sadness that comes with that, but we get to celebrate the second highest feast of the Church year, as well. Pentecost is the commissioning of the Church; it is Her birthday, and without that authority and power, we could not live. Glory to God!

My observation about the local weather pattern around Ascension and Pentecost held true this year. Rich said that maybe Jesus needs a headwind to ascend (that is a joke!). We had hotter weather earlier last week, and it is cooling a bit with wind this week. This week is yet another busy week. Sometimes I wonder if we will ever have an easy going, slow week again. There is a lot going on this week, including an end of year potluck for some of the girls' classes. God bless our parish family who took over the meal for tonight so I could handle all the other things thrown at me this past week. Several of our meals this week are garbage management so we can use the bits and bobs that were left over from other meals this past week.

I scheduled some things wrong and thought we were getting our last load of asparagus this week, but it was last week, so I am having to rush our pickling this year. Nearly all of our fruit tree blossoms froze this year, though we are hoping the apple blossoms will make it (they come later in the season) and we might get apples this year. No apricots, peaches, plums, or cherries. Maybe we will see pears, though.

As we approach Pentecost, I am filled with gratitude to the Church. I always appreciate Apostolic authority, but I am especially glad for it now. Without it, after all, we couldn't eat bacon, or cheeseburgers, or crab! As we grow in faith, I see how important it is to have it. There is so much confusion in the modern world, and the clarity brought by the Church is so valuable. God has undone the confusion of Babel for us, and it is our vocation to follow Him. We will be hosting our traditional Pentecost Tongues of Flame Barbecue next week, and I am really looking forward to that.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Leftovers, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: Chili, Salad, GF Cornbread, Roasted Asparagus, Fruit
• Monday
  Breakfast: Cereal and Milk, Sliced Apples, Coffee, Tea and Milk
  Dinner: Creamy Champagne Chicken, Basmati Rice, Steam Sautéed Asparagus with Garlic and Summer Savory, Fruit Plate
• Tuesday - Feast of Saint Dunstan
  Breakfast: Egg and Labneh Bagel Sandwiches, Oranges, Milk, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: Korean Style Ground Beef, Stir Fried Sesame Asparagus, Jasmine Rice, Sliced Oranges
• Wednesday - Feast of Saint Alcuin
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Oranges, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Thai Style Coconut Rice Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Asparagus and Potato Scramble, Toast, Sliced Apples, Coffee, Tea and Milk
  Dinner: Pizzas, Salads, Cookies
• Friday
  Breakfast: Potato and Asparagus Breakfast Hash, Home Canned Peaches, Tea and Honey
  Dinner: Eggplant Gyros, Flatbreads, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Yemeni Lahsa*, Bread, Home Canned Peaches, Milk, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: Kabuli Pulao, Laban bi Chiyar, Orange Rum Cake

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Ascension, Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Fesh'a, Homemaking, Homesteading, Keeping the Feast, Menu Plans, Pascha, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

This jam was inspired by a relatively expensive jam we found at the store last year. It was good quality, and I wanted to see how it would taste, so we bought some and I recreated it this year. We made a huge batch, but you can make a smaller one, if you like. This makes a beautiful and tasty gift, however, so you may wish to make a lot and add them to your Christmas baskets. We use pints, half pints, and 4 ounce jars. This recipe makes about 14 - 16 pints total.

10 cups cranberries, washed and picked over
6 cups pitted cherries (sweet or sour, we used a mix of both), we used frozen cherries from the summer
1 cup candied or dried orange slices, finely diced
3 tablespoons calcium water
10 cups sugar (you can use less if you use all sweet cherries, probably 8 or 9 cups)
3 tablespoons Pomona's universal pectin powder

Place cranberries, cherries, candied oranges, and calcium water in a large stock pot. Stir to combine and bring to a boil over medium to medium-high heat.

While the fruit is coming to a boil, mix together the sugar and pectin powder in a bowl and set aside.

When the fruit has come to a full, rolling boil, add the sugar and pectin mixture and stir to mix thoroughly. Return the mixture to a boil, then remove from heat, stir down a little, and pour into hot, sterilized jars, leaving 1/4" headspace. Wipe rims and cover with new lids. Screw on rings to finger tightness, not too tightly, just enough to keep the lids on before they are sealed.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Cool upright, remove rings and check seals, and store without the rings.

Labels: Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

It is almost the New Year in the Western Church! Next Sunday is the Feast of Christ the King and stir up Sunday, so I will be gathering ingredients to prepare for our Christmas cake.

We, again, had some schedule shifts last week, so there are a couple repeats this week. Because our co-op is finished for the season, we have more time freed up, which I am honestly glad to have. Our week begins with a visit from the bishop of our diocese in the Anglican Church where Rich helps serve. We are really happy to have his support and visit with him.

This is our last week before Thanksgiving, and since I dry brine ours, I need to get one out of the freezer so we can do that with enough time for it to be properly seasoned and ready for roasting on Thanksgiving. I also will be roasting some of our own turkey parts (necks and so on) to turn into extra stock for gravy. Some of the preparation I can do this week includes making the sweet potato rolls up to shaping, then freeze them, so they only have to thaw and rise, then be baked after the turkey is out of the oven.

For those of you who have been praying for our family in our troubles, may I please offer great thanks? We have had some wonderful moments of hope and encourgement over these past few weeks. There is still a long road to travel, but it has been good to have some obvious improvement. Thank you.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Steak and Eggs, Sliced Apples, Milk, Leftover Hot Cocoa and Coffee
  Dinner: Fancy Take Out Pizza, Red Potato Salad, Salads and Desserts by Parishioners
• Monday
  Breakfast: Spiced Prune Cake (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftovers
• Tuesday - Feast of Saint Elizabeth of Hungary
  Breakfast: Vegetable and Chorizo Hash, Mandarin Oranges, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: French Onion Soup with Gratinéed Croutons and Gruyère Cheese, Green Salad, Fruit Plate
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Cashew Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Thai Mussels with Jasmine Rice, Stir Fried Zucchini, Peppers and Onions, Sliced Oranges
• Thursday - Feast of The Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary)
  Breakfast: Fried Eggs, Toast, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Chicken Tikka Masala, Basmati Rice, Roasted Zucchini, Mandarin Oranges
• Friday - Feast of Saint Cecilia
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: White Bean and Squash Soup, Fruit Plate
• Saturday - Feast of Saint Clement of Rome
  Breakfast: Biscuit Breakfast Sandwiches (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pressure Cooker Greek Style Spare Ribs, Basmati Rice, Lemon Potatoes, Sautéed Mushrooms, Sliced Oranges

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

We are in the countdown to the Feast of the Nativity now. It is three weeks from the New Year in the Western Calendar, and the beginning of the fast (at the end of this week) on the Eastern Calendar (unless you are Old Calendar). It is time. We need this time of prayer, self-examination, fasting, confession, and almsgiving. I don't know about you, but I don't think I do enough of any of that. Tomorrow is also the feast of Saint Martin of Tours, a Christian Roman soldier and, later, bishop. His charity and faith are inspiring.

Last week, Rich made sure I could go on a two day spiritual retreat to learn about women saints. It was fantastic! I was hosted by a couple families from the church, who fed me beautifully, and were so generous in their hospitality. I learned so much, had the time and space to pray well, and really gained a great deal.

Because of that absence, though, I had not prepared some of the things necessary for our Saturday dinner and forgot to ask the family to do it while I was away, so we just did it Saturday, switched dinners with tomorrow's, and we will have the pork belly tacos tomorrow night. The younger kids want to do the lantern walk again, and the weather isn't so frigid and windy, so I think we will do it.

I'm kind of trying to streamline breakfasts now. You will see a lot of repeats on breakfasts over the next few weeks and months. I'm mostly rotating through several easy, quick breakfasts. We are having more complex or interesting breakfasts on weekends, though. Our meals will be slowly turning into abstinent and fasting more frequently. Fortunately, fish is permitted during most of this fast. If you do not observe Advent or the Nativity Fast in advance of the feast of the Nativity, may I encourage you to dig a little into either Western or Eastern Tradition about it, and slowly start praying, fasting, offering alms, and putting that with the study of the Holy Family, the Incarnation, and prepare yourself for His coming? Then, you can celebrate fully for all of the Christmas season (which begins late Christmas Eve, and ends on February 2).

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Pancakes with Raspberry Syrup, Sausages, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Not Texas Chili, Jalapeño Cheddar Bread, Toppings/Sides/Salads/Desserts brought by Parishioners
• Monday - Feast of Saint Martin of Tours
  Breakfast: Fried Halloum, Saint Martin's Day Almond Crescents (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Habanero Pork Belly Tacos, Ranchero Beans, Mexican Rice, Salsa, Mandarin Oranges
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Yogurt and Jam, Toast (GF for Jerome), Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Pressure Cooker Greek Style Spare Ribs, Basmati Rice, Lemon Potatoes, Sautéed Mushrooms, Sliced Apples
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Cashew Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Caponata and Pasta (GF for Jerome), Green Salad, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Fried Eggs, Toast (Gluten-free for Jerome), Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Cream of Jalapeño Soup, Crackers (GF for Jerome), Fruit Plate
• Friday
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Mejeddarah, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Cinnamon Roll Pancakes (GF for Jerome) with Cream Cheese Drizzle, Chorizo Patties, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Harvest Potluck - bringing Summer Squash Casserole (small one w/o crumbs for Jerome), Limoncello Zabaglione

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

This was such a busy weekend for us. Between the feasts of All Saints and All Souls, a couple of our kids going to a teen retreat in Idaho, a memorial for a friend and neighbor, and going to liturgy at a church an hour and a half away this morning for a Saints Alive feast and celebration, we have been on the go in every direction you can imagine.

We had a lot of winners last week for dinner. The Colombian beans, Croatian soup, and Spanish farmer's rice are all going to be seen on our menus again later this year and into next year. However, I'm finding that we are needing quicker, simpler breakfasts even than what I have been planning, so I am streamlining it even more. Also, I am trying to plan for leftover uses to stretch the budget and make cooking time easier at night. For instance, we have roast pork on the menu for tomorrow, but I know there will be a little left, so it will go into the fried rice the next day. I tried to make enough rice this weekend that I wouldn't have to cook any Monday for the dinner Tuesday, but we went through it all pretty thoroughly. Soups, stews, and legumes are still showing up a lot, as they are warm and filling and good for the family purse. Speaking of which, our Grocery Outlet had these Spanish tuna burgers, made with real food, for less than $4.00 per pound, which is a screaming deal. Even considering that we are paying for the other ingredients at that rate, it also means that all we have to do is to heat it up in a skillet or in the oven, so that seems like a win to me. We bought a lot of them.

Since we had freshly butchered chicken, I used it for a meal this past week and that meal is going on next week's menu. This next weekend is the first (and maybe only) weekend since we last butchered. We have about seven muscovies on death row, destined for the freezer. I'm also trying to sell about 10 to 12 of them. If you live near us, let me know if you are interested. We do not want to be feeding this many all winter, so we are keeping a few for breeding and eggs, and the rest will become meat or get sold. The meat will be lovely in meals come January, though we may try a little this month, too. Thanksgiving will be taking up a lot of the menu at the end of this month, and then the Advent fast begins. We may slip in one muscovy dinner before all of that.

Because of our very busy weekend, it was a relief to us that the folks at church all pitched in to plan a wonderful dinner so we wouldn't have to do it tonight. In fact, one person explicitly told me that I could send recipes and assignments if ever I needed assistance. One person sent me a text less than a day from returning from Italy to ask what she could bring. We are so grateful for these people who are our church family.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: None (morning Liturgy)
  Dinner: Moroccan Lamb and Chickpea Stew, Rice, Homemade Bread, Cinnamon Rolls
• Monday
  Breakfast: Fried Halloum, Sliced Tomatoes, Toast (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Roasted Garlic Herb Pork Loin, Roasted Broccoli, Baked Potatoes with Sour Cream and Scallions, Sliced Apples
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Yogurt and Jam, Toast (GF for Jerome), Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Fried Rice, Green Salad with Sesame Ginger Dressing, Fruit Plate
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Cashew Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Persian Potato Curry, Basmati Rice, Tomato Salad, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Hard Boiled Eggs, Toast (Gluten-free for Jerome), Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Tuna Burgers, Pickles, Potato Wedges, Torta Dominguera
• Friday
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Thai Mussels with Jasmine Rice to break the fast after Liturgy
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Pancakes (GF for Jerome) with Raspberry Syrup, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Habanero Pork Belly Tacos, Ranchero Beans, Mexican Rice, Salsa, Fruit

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

We got to go to a fun, family party last night, so my Saturday dinner plans are now on this week for Monday. This also means that I will share the beet salad recipe on Saturday, so I can post with pictures.

The weather is making a lot of our life a little more difficult, so we had some garden/produce disappointments this past week that we are mourning. However, dear Rich got a bunch of our birds in the freezer, so they aren't roaming around and we have wonderful meat for the year. This is our first time trying muscovy meat, and we have heard it is almost like red meat. I'm excited to try it. Our neighbors are probably excited not to see so many of our birds wandering. We really need to get more fencing up on the property.

We are eating more soup because of that weather, and I am so happy. I love soup. Part of our preserving our budget is also eating soups (and legumes), and I try to serve soup or stew once a week even in the summer, and at least one meal that is based in legumes. This week, we are having three soups, which is really pushing it for Rich, but he is a good sport about it, and three legume meals (one a soup!), though two of those have meat in them. Rich really prefers soups that are creamy or thick, so at least two of these fit that description. If you are trying to keep your budget well, soups and stews are great. Beans and other legumes are protein and calcium rich foods that are an integral part of many different cultures' cuisines, and can be made in so many different delcious ways. They also have the benefit of being inexpensive and filling - especially if you cook them from dry.

Since this week contains many feasts and memorials, we have a busy time ahead of us. We do celebrate Halloween, as the fun, trick or treat and costume celebration, but we also very much remember all the saints, which is why we celebrate it in the first place. We will be praying for all the souls who have passed, as well, this week. Have a fun All Hallow's Eve, but also please remember why we celebrate.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Spiced Prune Cake (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Bean and Bacon Soup, Sides/Salads/Bread/Fruit/Desserts brought by Parishioners
• Monday - Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles
  Breakfast: Chorizo and Vegetable Hash, Toast, Fruit Plate, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Waraq ‘Ounab, Rice, Harissa, Sah'awiq, Moroccan Beet Salad*, Olive Bread
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Steel Cut Oats with Chopped Apples, Raisins, Brown Sugar and Cinnamon, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Hobbit Dinner (Sausage, Potato, Cauliflower, Carrot and Onion Skillet), Green Salad, Fruit Plate
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Potato and Vegetable Hash with Salsa, Fruit Plate, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Croatian Roux Soup with Croutons, Salad, Sliced Apples
• Thursday - Eve of the Feast of All Saints
  Breakfast: Biscuit Breakfast Sandwiches (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Columbian Beans and Rice, Corn Tortillas, Salad, Fruit Plate
• Friday - Feast of All Saints
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Spanish Farmer's Rice, Spanish Poor Man's Potatoes, Fruit Plate
• Saturday - Comemoration of All Souls
  Breakfast: Cinnamon Roll Pancakes with Cream Cheese Drizzle, Chorizo Patties, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Cream of Jalapeño Soup, Crackers (GF for Jerome), Fruit Plate

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

We celebrated Amelia's birthday this weekend! She is growing so much and we love her more each day.

I keep thinking we will be finished with the preserving, but there always seems to be a little more. We still have tomatoes to finish and a little more apple pie filling to make. The apple scrap vinegar is a great side product from all the peels and trimmings. And we'll probably smoke some more tomatoes and make more tomato powder.

Our week was challenging and some menu items were moved around so we have repeats this week. We also were given a bounty of eggplant, and used some on Friday, and will be using more this week. If we still have some, I will turn it into caponata for the freezer and pull it out when we need a quick Lenten meal.

Also, I know I was supposed to share a recipe this weekend, but we didn't get it made, so I didn't have a photo, and I thought I'd wait until I had a picture of it for you to share. We are trying again this week, and I should be able to make it because we don't have the weird appointments and schedule shifts that we did last week.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Pancakes and Maple Syrup, Bacon, Grapes, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Kofta and Potato Stew, Sides/Salads/Fruit brought by Parish Members, Leftover Birthday Cake
• Monday - Feast of Saint Hilarion the Great
  Breakfast: Spiced Prune Cake (GF for Jerome), Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pepperoni Pizzas with Peppers, Red Onion, and Tomato, Green Salad, Mandarin Oranges
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal Muffins with Cashew Butter, Fruit Plate, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Cream of Jalapeño Soup, Crackers (GF for Jerome), Fruit Plate
• Wednesday - Feast of Saint James of Jerusalem
  Breakfast: Potato and Vegetable Breakfast Tacos with Salsa, Fruit Plate, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Moroccan Lentils with Eggplant and Cauliflower, Rice, Moroccan Beet and Onion Salad*, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Overnight Breakfast Enchiladas with Egg, Chorizo and Diced Tomatoes, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Bacon Cheeseburgers, Potato Wedges, Pickles, Fruit Plate
• Friday - Feast of Saints Crispin and Crispian
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Spanish Farmer's Rice, Spanish Poor Man's Potatoes, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Savory Parmesan French Toast with Hollandaise Sauce, Fruit Plate, Bacon, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Waraq ‘Ounab, Rice, Harissa, Tomato Salad, Fruit Plate

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

The peppers are finished! We still have a lot in our fridge, but we are using them in cooking. Unless we get another crate, we are finished with freezing and drying them. We are still working on apples. I want to get enough applesauce and dried apples and apple scrap vinegar made so we only have apples to fill a couple drawers in our produce fridge. I still need to make the salsa, though, and we are going to smoke some more tomatoes to preserve and turn the skins into more smoked tomato powder (which is fantastic in rice dishes, soups, sauces, added to meatballs, or in sour cream based dips). We also just picked up 50 pounds of yellow onions and 25 pounds of red onions which store really well, so mostly they are just going into storage for us to use over the next few months, but we are also going to dry (outside) some of the yellow onions to put into an onion dip mix that I will be making as part of our Christmas presents this year.

This week is the anniversary of Rich and my first date. It is 30 years since we count our first date. I don't remember if I've shared that story here, but we started that night not on a date and ended it on a date. Since times are tight, we are using a bunch of gift certificates that we have to have a progressive lunch date. Then, I am making a special dinner for us at home.

God is so good to us. With all the continually rising prices, He keeps providing for us in markdowns at the store, things we need from our gleaning group, and even produce that is still coming from our garden. One thing I have learned, too, is that apples that aren't that great (sorry, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, and Gala apples) can be made much better through drying them. I don't know why, but even the most bland and sad apples taste really good when dried. So, that's your tip for what to do with apples you aren't thrilled with and don't want to waste. Also, I was surprised to find that Honeycrisp apples, which are really tasty fresh and taste more than sweet enough, need a little sugar when turning them into applesauce. I've never added sugar to applesauce before using Gravensteins, Yellow Transparents, and Fujis, but this year we had a lot of Honeycrisps from our gleaning group, and when I cooked them down, they just didn't taste as sweet as those apples usually do. It is only a little sugar, and I am using brown sugar, but about a quarter cup to about 25 apples seems to be enough.

Last night was our local crisis pregnancy center's fundraising dinner. Rich and I attended again (I think we have only missed it one year since living here), and two of our girls helped serve and clear away the dishes. It was a great experience, and we were so proud of our girls for helping. The work they do at the crisis pregnancy center is so crucial to helping men, women and children in need in our community, and we are so glad to help them in their mission. Part of being pro-life is being active about supporting the people in crises who are in a position to choose other than life. Please pray that all life would be welcomed and supported.

• Sunday - Feast of Saint Edward the Confessor
  Breakfast: Leftover Roulette, Sliced Apples, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Ouzi Lamb and Rice, Sides/Salads/Fruit/Desserts brought by Church Family
• Monday
  Breakfast: Sausage and Potato Hash with Salsa, Plums, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Kofta bil Bayd, Rice Pilaf, Moroccan Beet Salad*, Sah'awiq, Apple Pies and Vanilla Ice Cream
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Chopped Apples, Raisins, Brown Sugar and Spices, Milky Tea
  Dinner: Lemon Pesto Pasta (Gluten free for Jerome), Italian Sausage Meatballs, Truffle Butter Baguettes, Green Salad, Fruit
• Wednesday - Feast of Saint Longinus the Centurion
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Almond Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Bouktouf, Khoubz Zeitoun, Tomato Salad, Fruit Plate
• Thursday - Feast of Saint Hosea the Prophet
  Breakfast: Fried Eggs, Toast, Sliced Apples, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Papas con Chorizo, Salsa, Sour Cream, Chopped Avocados, Salad, Fruit Plate
• Friday - Feast of Saint Luke the Evangelist
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Spanish Farmer's Rice, Spanish Poor Man's Potatoes, Fruit Plate
• Saturday - Feast of Saint Joel the Prophet
  Breakfast: Savory Parmesan French Toast with Hollandaise Sauce, Fruit Plate, Bacon, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pasta Bolognese Sauce (Gluten free for Jerome), Green Salad, Torta Dominguera

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Romance and Relationship, Tales from the Kitchen

We are still putting up apples! And peppers. And tomatoes. The freezes have meant that everything is coming in to be prepped for winter. We are supposed to have a carrot glean, and i am looking forward to that, because they store so well without a lot of extra effort on our part. Also, we had an opportunity to buy two 50 pound bags of onions for less money than the three to five pound bags are costing at the grocery store, and we use a LOT of onions. We are hoping for a potato glean. We live in prime potato growing country, and potatoes are usually plentiful. Unfortunately, the flies and black widows are also trying to prepare for winter, so we are killing a ton. We are seeing more black widows in our area than is the norm, which is probably because of our milder winter and weird summer.

Because of our church schedule last week, we were just too tired for our bonfire and Michaelmas dragon, so we did it last night. We had the dragon guts with an almond crumble for Jerome, so he could avoid the bread. We have a family birthday this week, but it is for an adult son who is out of the house, so, we will see what their plans are.

My experiment with freezing the falafel mix and also freezing some of the falafel shaped, then frying them worked beautifully. Both worked equally well, but freezing them shaped and frying from frozen means less work at the fryer. So, now we have a plan of attack for the kebab fest next year.

We are still cooking our way through our freezers and pantries and making room. Also, thank God, saving some money because of this. We hope to stock our freezers with some geese and are filling it with peppers and other lovely ingredients for the fall and winter and early spring. Now that I am not afraid of my pressure canner, I have been canning any new stock we make and using the frozen stock to empty the freezers. This gives us shelf stable stocks to use in our cooking, and frees up even more space in our freezers for other things.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Chorizo and Potato Hash Burritos, Salsa, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Garlic Herb Roasted Pork Loin, Sides/Salads/Fruit/Desserts brought by Church Family
• Monday
  Breakfast: Battatas ou Bayd, Toast, Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Thai Style Ginger Chicken with Eggplant, Stir Fried Bean Sprouts, Jasmine Rice, Sliced Watermelon
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Chopped Apples, Raisins, Brown Sugar and Cinnamon, Milky Tea
  Dinner: Korean Style Beef with Patty Pan Squash and Bean Sprouts, Jasmine Rice, Sliced Apples
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Almond Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Fried Cauliflower, Arabic Style Rice Pilaf (without the vermicelli), Taratoor, Tomato Salad, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Overnight Breakfast Enchiladas with Egg and Chorizo, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Green Chile Pork, Salsa Rice, Corn Tortillas, Fruit Plate
• Friday
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Florida Style Black Beans*, Rice, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Pancakes (Gluten free for Jerome) and Raspberry Syrup, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Wedding Pork (leftover in our freezer), Salsa Rice, Tortillas, Fruit Plate

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Birthday, Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they were defeated and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world -- he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. -- Revelation 12:7-9

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits, who roam through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

Sancte Michael Archangele, defende nos in praelio. Contra nequitiam et insidias diaboli esto praesidium. Imperet illi Deus, supplices deprecamur. Tuque princeps militiae caelestis, Satanam aliosque spiritus malignos, qui ad perditionem animarum pervagantur in mundo divina virtute in infernum detrude. Amen.

This week was our first full work of school and, unfortunately, we had a little sickness in the house. Nothing worse than a cold, but it does put a damper on things. We did get most of our peppers frozen that we wanted to freeze and we are trying to decide if we can eat all the rest in time, or just put a few more bags in the freezer (or dry some). This weekend was all about apples. We made applesauce, apple scrap vinegar, and apple pie filling, and we dried loads of apples. Normally I freeze the pie filling, but I am going to try a batch of it canned and see if we like the results. If so, we can free up some more freezer space and have more that is shelf stable and ready to go. So, there will be another apple pie this week. Oh, darn! If worse comes to worst, and we don't like having the apple pie filling pre-cooked as it would be in canning, I'm sure we can find a way to use it in a different way.

Speaking of weekends and freezers, we are going to have to postpone our goose butchering, it sounds like. We had hoped to do it yesterday, but there was a lot needing done in the garden, and a need for a larger scalder for the birds. So, they have a reprieve. And our neighbors don't.

Did I mention that I agreed to provide the falafel mix for next year's kebab fest? They talked about adding falafel to the menu and I said I would only be a party to it if they didn't use a mix. So, I said I'd be willing to mix it all up in advance, and other people could fry it. I will be experimenting this week (and over the next few months) to see if it can be frozen and thawed to make later, and if that is successful, if it can be frozen shaped and then fried from frozen.

We had so much going on with our weekend, and before church today, that we didn't get our Michaelmas dragon made, and we forgot to make waffles with blackberries instead of pancakes with raspberry syrup. So, we might have a belated bonfire and dragon this coming weekend. We will be celebrating Jerome's name day, too.

• Sunday - Feast of Saint Michael and All Archangels
  Breakfast: Pancakes and Raspberry Syrup, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Filfil Mahshi (Stuffed Peppers), Rice, Sides/Salads/Fruit/Desserts brought by Church Family
• Monday - Feast of Saint Jerome
  Breakfast: Sausage and Potato Hash Burritos with Salsa, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Porchetta, Roasted Potatoes, Fried Peppers and Onions, Lion Cupcakes
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Tomato Toast, Fruit Plate, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Spicy Spanish Tomato Skillet with Eggs and Cheese, Bread, Beet and Onion Salad, Torta Dominguera
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Scrambled Chickpeas with Veggies, Toast, Sliced Apples, Mint Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Falafel, Khoubz Araby, Sliced Veggies, Olives, Sah'awiq, Toum, Taratoor, Harissa, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Overnight Breakfast Enchiladas with Egg and Chorizo, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Italian Sausage and Potato Bake, Italian Bread, Melting Apple Cake
• Friday
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Mexican Garlic Soup with Oregano and Fried Tortilla Strips, Salad, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Savory Parmesan French Toast with Hollandaise Sauce, Fruit Plate, Bacon, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Sudanese Kofta, Rice, Loubiyeh bi Zeit, Apple Pies

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Michaelmas, Name Day, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

We had a great, but tiring weekend. Rich had a short business trip to Lake Chelan, and I got to go with him. It was short enough that I really didn't get a lot finished while he worked, but I did get to rest, which is worth quite a bit. Also, I got to hang out at the pool and on the lake and soak in the last of the summer sun. Then, after we got home, we had a day of volunteering at the Kebab Fest in Wenatchee. The kids, Rich and I all helped and had a fantastic time. We ate our fill of gyros, kebabs, feta garlic fries, honey nut cookies and came home with a tray of baklava (I'll call it that, because it was the Greek kind made by Greek Yiayias).

Since it is an Antiochian church that puts this on, we asked why there was Greek music playing, rather than debke and traditional Arabic music. They said that if we can get the music to them a month before next year's, they will play it. We are on it!

Sunday mornings are really our time to rest, and since we have services in the evening, we have a leisurely breakfast and ease into the morning. That will give us a chance to rest from our busy-ness of the end of this past week. Our dinner after church is a turkey soup, which is easy to make, and Mariam is making my chocolate chip cookie recipe to share.

Our gleaning group has been fantastic lately, with the end of season produce, and we have something like 150 - 200 pounds of honeycrisp apples and 100 pounds of sweet peppers. We will be eating and cooking those, as well as drying, freezing, storing as many for winter and spring and next summer. A few years ago, we froze about 20 or 30 bags of apple pie filling, and I'm trying to decide if I want to do that again, or maybe can them, so we don't fill the freezers.

In the spirit of using what is in season and fresh, there are a lot of peppers and apples on the menu this week. An apple pie has been intimated, so I will do that Saturday and find a way to make it without a crust for Jerome.

Sadly, on our way to Lake Chelan, we saw three or four flocks of sandhill cranes. They are beautiful, and we love seeing them, but they herald the shift to winter, and we know it is coming soon.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Vegetable and Sausage Hash and Eggs, Baklava, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: After Thanksgiving Soup, Oyster Crackers/Gluten-free Crackers for Jerome, Sides/Salads/Fruit/Dessert brought by Church Family, Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Monday - Feast of The Conception of Saint John the Baptist
  Breakfast: Shakshouka, Toast, Sliced Apples, Milky Tea
  Dinner: Beef and Cheddar Potato Stove Top Gratin, Tomato Salad, Baked Apples
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Fried Eggs, Toast, Sliced Apples, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Slow Cooker Sausage and Peppers in Sauce, Bread, Fruit Plate
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Chopped Apples, Cinnamon and Brown Sugar, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Ful, Sah'awiq, Bread, Fruit Plate
• Thursday - Feast of The Falling Asleep of Saint John the Evangelist and Theologian
  Breakfast: Leftover Oatmeal Muffins with Almond Butter, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Cashew Chicken and Peppers, Jasmine Rice, Frozen Fruit Salad
• Friday
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Fruit, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Pasta Trapanese (gluten-free pasta for Jerome), Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Cinnamon Roll Pancakes with Cream Cheese Drizzle, Chorizo Patties, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Chicken Salad with Bacon and Gorgonzola Sandwiches (or in Tomatoes for Jerome), Pickled Asparagus, Apple Pies

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

Blessed Fast! Happy New Year! Though Advent is shorter this year, and even came later than normal, it feels a little rushed. Part of that is that so many of us in the family have been dealing with deadlines and pressures and things that just have to be done. Please pray for a holy Advent for us.

Because of our evening church situation, we are a bit more lax on the fast on Sundays than we otherwise might be. You may see dairy on those days. Also, the Advent fast is a little lighter, in general, as there are many fish days, and more wine and oil days. We try to fast within our strength and do the best we can, knowing that the point is the spiritual training and not the fast itself. The fast was given to us as an exercise and blessing. The only reason I share how we fast is so you know what to expect from meals and recipes during this time, if you are looking for ideas, or if you need to avoid some of the things we will be eating.

The West's fast is more lenient and shorter than the East's, anyway. Our family walks the line between those. Maybe because of that extra week, we were able to eat up the meat before it went to waste, and could start with the light fast today. Our general rule is close to the Orthodox, but we will relax more for Saints Barbara and Nicholas, including egg and dairy those days, and on Sundays, except for the final two weeks of Advent. We will be avoiding meat, fish (most days), eggs and dairy (with the exceptions I mentioned already), wine and olive oil on most weekdays. Shellfish is always permitted, so when we find that at a good price, we definitely eat it. I share this with you as an encouragement. We strive within our strength, and our family situation. We have discussed how to handle this with our priests and our local priests, and are considering also the parish we are part of that doesn't generally follow the fast as much. Fasting and abstinence are such good tools that God gives us through the Church, and I encourage you to try to fast with the Church. It is not as useful to pick and choose, but rather to strive for your church's rule with such accomodations as necessary for health, age, and situation. Talk to your priest. If you don't have a priest, find one and talk to him.

The Hawaiian "tacos" last week were kind of a bust. They were edible, and we ate them, and the slaw recipe that came with it was actually excellent, but there was just too much going on in those white people tacos. We won't make it again. However, the pork chops pizzaiola were fantastic, and quick to make, even for the kids (who made the entire dinner that night, because I was working on something that had to be done ASAP), and we will definitely make that again. With pork chops being relatively inexpensive, we have a ton in our freezers, so come January, we will be using them more again. Also, we found out that we can use our sourdough starter discard to make crumpets, so that will appear more often. It is perfectly fast friendly, and gives us something to make with the starter besides crackers (which are also Lenten and taste a little like cheese). The website where I first saw the sourdough cracker recipe has warned us that it is going away, so I will share our interpretation of them soon. We are still trying to eat from what is in our freezers and pantry and get fresh produce and replenish staples for our groceries. This helps us make room for the deals to come later this month, and the final butchering we have planned. The good news is that nobody wants to eat meat right after butchering, so it won't tempt us.

Every winter, I wish we could live more according to the season and light, and sleep more and do less, but it seems that this time is even busier. So, we will do our best on that score, also. This is such a hard time of year for many of us in the family, though. December and January, especially, are so cold here. We've had our first snow, our first consistent snow, and our first snow that stuck. This week is supposed to warm up a bit, by which I mean in the 30s and 40s, but we don't have snow in the forecast. The roads are slick, though, and we have kids on the road, so pray for them, also.

I pray that your fast will be fruitful, and that you welcome the Christ Child in your heart and home, and prepare for His coming in glory!

• Sunday - First Sunday of Advent
  Breakfast: Dirty Eggs, Mandarin Oranges, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pasta with Roasted Pepper Sauce and Goat Cheese, Salad, Fruit
• Monday - Feast of Saints Barbara and Clement of Alexandria
  Breakfast: Steel Cut Oats with Raisins, Cinnamon Sugar and Coconut Milk, Fruit, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Tomato Dal, Qamhiyeh for St. Barbara's Day, Saffron Buns for St. Barbara's Day
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Sourdough Crumpets, Peanut Butter and Honey, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Pan Fried Walleye, Mount Athos Rice, Salad/Fruit brought by Bible study members
• Wednesday - Feast of Saint Nicholas of Myra
  Breakfast: Initial Cookies for St. Nicholas' Day, Fruit, Nuts, Chocolate, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pasta Trapanese*, Cabbage Salad, Fruit
• Thursday - Feast of Saint Ambrose of Milan
  Breakfast: Scrambled Chickpeas, Toast, Sliced Apples, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Sardine Curry, Rice, Fruit Plate
• Friday
  Breakfast: Potato and Vegetable Hash Burritos with Salsa, Fruit Plate, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Sweet and Sour Shrimp, Jasmine Rice, Fruit
• Saturday - Feast of the Conception of the Theotokos, Blessed Virgin Mary
  Breakfast: Lenten Tropical Muffins with Almond Butter, Fruit Plate, Tea and Coffee
  Dinner: Lemon Garlic Scallops with White Wine and Olive Oil, Parsleyed Rice Pilaf, Green Salad, Fruit Plate

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Advent, Church Year, Faith and Morality, Fasting as a Family, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Prayer Requests, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Blessed feast! Today we remember that Christ is King as the Church year ends. It is a Western, relatively new (instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925), feast that we love. Even the older liturgical calendars emphasize His kingship on this day, so it is really a celebration of what was already remembered. In our world today, that is more important than ever.

This is what Pope Pius XI had to say about its importance:

“If to Christ our Lord is given all power in heaven and on earth; if all men, purchased by his precious blood, are by a new right subjected to his dominion; if this power embraces all men, it must be clear that not one of our faculties is exempt from his empire. He must reign in our minds, which should assent with perfect submission and firm belief to revealed truths and to the doctrines of Christ. He must reign in our wills, which should obey the laws and precepts of God. He must reign in our hearts, which should spurn natural desires and love God above all things, and cleave to him alone. He must reign in our bodies and in our members, which should serve as instruments for the interior sanctification of our souls, or to use the words of the Apostle Paul, as instruments of justice unto God.”

Pious tradition in the Catholic and Anglican worlds is to start preparations for your Christmas cake or pudding, too. Because the collect begins with "Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord," and continues with "that they plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may of thee be plenteously rewarded," it serves both as a spiritual reminder and a fun one for Christmas preparations. We are plenteously rewarded when Christmas Day comes and our cake or pudding is ready. For many and sundry reasons, I will be stirring up our fruits and brandy later this week, while I focus on other things first.

Advent in the West begins later than it does for the East. It is more a Saint Andrew's fast than a Saint Philip's fast. This year, it is even shorter because the Nativity is on a Monday, so the fourth Sunday of Advent is Christmas Eve. In some ways, it feels like a grace from God that it is shorter. This has been such a hard driving year. Also, as the Advent fast is a little lighter until the last week of it, we are still permitted fish, wine and oil on most days, and we, as a family will be having dairy on the weekends to accomodate others and permit some shared hospitality with a culture that doesn't really observe any spiritual preparation or penitence before the Nativity.

We still have loads of tomatoes, both ripe and green, from our garden in our barns, and we are using them up as we can. A friend shared a recipe for a green tomato mincemeat that I plan to make and can and use for Christmas this year. Since we do have an extra week without the Nativity fast, we are enjoying more of our pies. Rich is taking some to work, for them to enjoy our bounty, as well. I'm trying a recipe this week that can only be described as "white people tacos," and I already know that Rich will only be so-so on it, but it sounded like something we could modify and improve. We shall see if it is worth that effort. Since we are using up tomatoes as much as possible, we are eating loads this week.

Between the holiday and the busy-ness of the last week, I still haven't shared the recipes I meant to, so I will try to do that this week. What are you eating on this final week of the Church year?

• Sunday - Feast of Christ the King
  Breakfast: Dirty Eggs, Mandarin Oranges, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Leftover Casserole, Salad, Chestnut Dressing, Bread Stuffing, Pies
• Monday
  Breakfast: Pie, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Instant Pot Hawaiian Chicken Tacos with Jalapeño Ranch Slaw, Rice, Fruit Plate
• Tuesday
  Breakfast: Yogurt with Jam, Toast, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Lamb and Guinness Stew, Soda Bread (the recipe is formatted a little oddly, the raisins are optional, not the buttermilk), Last of the Pies
• Wednesday
  Breakfast: Oatmeal with Chopped Apples, Raisins, Brown Sugar and Cinnamon, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Shorbat 'Addas, Tamis, Tomato and Onion Salad, Fruit Plate
• Thursday - Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle
  Breakfast: Labneh, Chopped Tomatoes, Za'atar and Olive Oil on Toast, Oranges, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Pork Chops Pizzaiola, Garlic Pasta, Roasted Veggies, Fruit Plate
• Friday
  Breakfast: Ful, Toast, Chopped Tomatoes and Onions, Duqqus, Kalamata Olives, Mandarin Oranges, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Tomato Fritters, Battatas Harra, Roasted Squash with Taratoor and Pine Nuts
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Milopita to break the fast after Liturgy
  Dinner: Not Texas Chili, Cornbread, Chopped Red Onion, Cilantro, Avocado, Cheese, Sour Cream, Cookies

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Christ the King, Church Year, Faith and Morality, Homemaking, Homesteading, Menu Plans, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen

Corn Relish with Sweet and Hot Peppers

This is a recipe that began with Laurie Colwin's Home Cooking and More Home Cooking, and brought me to Helen Witty's fantastic preserving book Fancy Pantry (there is an updated version, called The Good Stuff Cookbook, as well). I have reduced the sugar, increased the vinegar, added hot peppers to the mix, and eliminated the celery. This is a delicious relish on hot dogs, hamburgers, cold cut sandwiches, if you add some cooked beans to it, it makes a lovely side salad or summer main dish, as well. It is quite fine mixed with mayonnaise and sour cream and chopped, cooked, meat to make a salad (to fill sandwiches or tomatoes or avocados). You can eat it with any roasted meat, like a chutney, and it makes a wonderful addition to the relish tray for Thanksgiving or New Year's Day. We usually make double this amount for our yearly supply. If you want to reduce the hot peppers, you can increase the sweet peppers instead.

6 cups cooked corn kernels (from about 10 to 12 ears)
2 cups diced onions (red are pleasant)
1 cup cored and seeded sweet peppers, chopped
3/4 cup finely diced hot peppers
4 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons fine non-iodized salt
2 tablespoons dry mustard
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons celery seed

Combine all ingredients in a heavy bottomed preserving pan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Lower heat and simmer, partly covered, until it has thickened slightly, about 20 - 30 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Ladle the boiling relish into hot, sterilized pint canning jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Wipe rims, and place a new lid on the jar, holding in place with a clean ring, tightened to finger tightness. Process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. Let the relish mellow about three weeks before serving. These jars will last for years.

Labels: Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

Here are two excellent recipes for using up green tomatoes leftover from the last of the summer harvest and a recipe for an excellent tomato salsa for when you still have ripe tomatoes. I've included a bonus recipe for a garlic ginger paste that is useful enough to keep in the fridge at all times. Most Asian recipes, Indian recipes, even Arabic recipes use ginger and garlic together, and this saves you a step.

Simple Tomato Salsa for Canning

Most canned salsa recipes have basically no heat to them. I don't even know why they include any jalapeños at all. So, this one still preserves the ratios of the ingredients, but makes it so you can still taste some of the heat. It is still fairly mild to medium, this is not a super hot salsa, but it is remarkably fresh tasting salsa with a little heat to it.

7 quarts tomatoes, peeled, cored and chopped
5 cups peeled and chopped onion
3 cups finely chopped jalapeño peppers
1 cup seeded, chopped anaheim or other mild green chile
10 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 1/2 cups lime juice
4 1/2 tablespoons fine salt (canning/pickling salt, non-iodized)
1 cup finely chopped cilantro

In a large pot, combine all ingredients except the cilantro and heat over medium-high heat, stirring until the mixture comes to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro at the end.

Fill hot, sterilized pint or quart jars, leaving a half inch of headspace, wipe rims and seal with lid and ring. Process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. This will yield around 10 pints plus a 1/2 pint or so, or 5 quarts plus a pint and 1/2 pint or so.

Green Tomato Dill Relish

I like this relish at least as much as dill pickle relish, maybe more, and it is wonderful to use those green tomatoes at the end of the season, rather than let them go to waste.

8 pounds green tomatoes, washed and dried, stems and hard cores removed, finely diced
4 cups apple cider vinegar
2 cups of white wine vinegar
2 cups water
3/4 cup pickling salt
12 sprigs fresh dill + one for each jar
4 shallots, or one medium onion, peeled and finely diced
4 fresh chili peppers, cut in half lengthwise
2 tablespoons dried dill

In a large, heavy pot, combine vinegars, water, salt and fresh dill. Bring to a boil and cook for about half an hour at a high simmer. Remove dill sprigs.

Reduce heat, add tomatoes, shallots, peppers, dried dill, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes. Turn off heat.

Fill hot, sterilized pint jars with a quarter inch headspace, add remaining fresh dill to each jar. Seal and place in fridge or process for 10 minutes in a boiling water bath.

Makes about 6 pints. Will keep for three months in the refrigerator or for years in the processed jars.

Green Tomato Chutney

I got this recipe from Aunty Leila and then modified the method to make it easier for me to do in my busy home and kitchen. Using this method also means that the tomatoes and apples keep some of their firmness instead of turning into a mush. This is delicious, and again, uses those green tomatoes at the end of the season and turns them into something lovely to have in your pantry or refrigerator (hmmm, it's time to update that list, and tackle the ones on my freezer and pantry) to dress up some cold ham, grilled chicken, roasted or grilled fish, pork chops, you name it. This is one way you can cultivate or curate abundance. You can drizzle a little of this over a brie, then wrap it in puff pastry for a lovely hors-d'ouevre on the fly. Honestly, this could be eaten from a spoon.

4 cups cider vinegar
2 cups of sultanas (golden raisins)
2 medium onions, peeled and chopped
2 seeded, chopped lemons
1 1/2 cup dark honey (you could use all brown sugar)
2 cups brown sugar
2 heaping tablespoons of garlic ginger paste
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoon ground coriander
2 tablespoon whole mustard seed
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon salt
12 cups green tomatoes, chopped
2 cooking apples, cored and chopped

In a large pot, combine all ingredients except for the chopped green tomatoes and apples, mixing well. Bring to a simmer and cook for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, to reduce the liquid and combine the flavors.

Add the chopped tomatoes and apples and simmer another 15 - 20 minutes, keeping an eye on it so nothing burns.

Ladle into sterile, hot, pint and/or half-pint canning jars, seal, process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes for half-pints, 15 minutes for pints. This will yield about 6 pints and 6 half-pints, plus some smaller jars, or about 10 pints. Any jars that aren't completely full can go into the refrigerator, and will last as long as you need them, if you don't eat them up first.

Garlic Ginger Paste

This is easiest to do in a food processor, but if you do not have one, you can grate the garlic and ginger into a jar and stir in the salt and oil.

1/2 cup peeled garlic cloves
1/2 cup peeled and roughly chopped ginger
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons safflower oil

Place garlic, ginger, and salt in a food processor. Grind until the mixture is finely chopped. Drizzle in the oil and process until smooth. Scrape into a jar and keep in the fridge indefinitely.

Labels: Frugality, Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

This is basically the method I use for canning peaches and other fruit, but with a couple extra steps. Peeling pears is more laborious and takes longer, so I also put them in a bowl of cold water with the juice of a lemon in it to keep the pears from discoloring too much as we prepare them. Most of us like these pears spiced, but Rich doesn't like it as well as plain, so we do one canner load without the spices and one with them. To make it without the spices, just don't add them to the syrup. Or if some of the spices aren't to your liking, leave those out or use others. You are really just infusing the syrup with the spice. I have sometimes made vanilla pears by putting leftover bits of vanilla pod in the syrup. I don't really know how many jars this makes, because I tend to make more syrup if we run out or store syrup in the fridge if we have too much. I think this makes about 7 - 8 quart jars.

Spiced Syrup:
2 cups sugar
8 cups water
4 cardamom pods
4 1/4-inch slices of fresh ginger or 4 small pieces of candied ginger
2 whole cloves
1 large stick cinnamon
1 small piece of nutmeg (this is a good use for the little nub you have leftover after grating for other recipes)
1 teaspoon dried orange peel

15 - 20 pounds of pears, peeled, halved, and cored, and set in a large bowl of cold water with the juice of a lemon

Make syrup in a large stock pot by bringing the sugar, water and spices to a boil and boiling for 2 minutes, then removing from the heat.

Pack hot, sterilized quart jars tightly with the pear halves. Then add a few more than you thought would fit. They always seem to float a little, no matter how tightly we pack them. Ladle in the hot syrup, leaving 1/2" headspace in the jars. Using a thin knife, or skewer, poke down through the jars to release air bubbles. Wipe rims and cover with new lids. Screw on rings to finger tightness, not too tightly, just enough to keep the lids on before they are sealed.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Cool upright, remove rings and check seals, and store without the rings.

Labels: Frugality, Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

Battatas ou Bayd

This is not the prettiest dish, but it sure is delicious. It's a quick and hot breakfast, perfect for cold fall and winter mornings. In the Arab world, it seems like recipes are either very literally named (as this one, which simply means potatoes and eggs), or they have fanciful stories attached to them (like baba ghanooj, which is named for a spoiled papa).  I've given this recipe per person, and you can adjust up for as many people as you are serving. We normally do ten times this amount.

sunflower oil (or another light oil)
1 large potato, peeled and diced into 1/2 inch cubes
1/4 teaspoon sumac
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon Aleppo pepper
salt, to taste
1 large egg

Heat an appropriately sized skillet over medium-high heat until the pan feels hot for at least 30 seconds when your hand is held a few inches over it. Add a generous amount of oil (enough for the potatoes as well as the egg), then the potatoes. Increase the heat to high and allow to sit and cook until they brown a little on the bottom.

Flip the potatoes and allow to brown again. Do this another time or two, until all sides are crisp and brown. Add the spices and salt and toss to mix well.

Crack egg and add to the pan with the potatoes. Immediately reduce the heat to medium and mix up the egg with the potatoes and spices.  Serve hot with fruit, bread, and whatever you like.

 

Salatat Zeitoun (Green Olive Salad)

This is a salad and relish all in one. In Southwest Asia and North Africa, pickles and relishes like this are eaten with just about every meal. Even foods like hummus and baba ghanooj are considered salads like this that can be eaten with the meal. This is a bright and tangy dish that is delicious with rich foods. Some people like to make a large batch of this to store long term. If you plan to do that, you may wish to reserve the fresh lemon peel to add at the time of serving to preserve their freshness. This is not necessary if you use preserved lemons.

2 cups diced bell pepper (cut into 1/2 inch squares)
2 cups pitted, brined green olives, finely chopped
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 medium lemon, seeded and roughly chopped (you can also use a preserved lemon)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt + more to prep the vegetables
2 tablespoons shatta* (hot pepper paste), optional, but not really
olive oil to cover

Place peppers in a colander, sprinkle with salt, and place the colander in a bowl. Leave in the fridge overnight. (This is to reduce the water content of the peppers. This will preserve the salad much longer).

Mix the olives, pepper, lemon peel, walnuts and shatta. If you prefer a finer texture, pulse all of these in your food processor. Place the mixture in jars and add enough olive oil to cover and fully submerge the mixture. Close with lids and store in the fridge.

Shatta

1 pound red chili peppers
2 tablespoons salt
juice of 1 large lemon, strained (about 3 tablespoons)
good olive oil

Wash peppers and dry them them. Leave them in the sun for 3 to 4 days or put in a food dryer for a couple hours. You want to dehydrate them a bit.

Remove stems and grind peppers in a meat grinder, food processor, or using a mortar and pestle.

Add 1 tablespoon salt and mix well with pepper paste, then place in a fine strainer in the refrigerator. The next day add another 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt, mix well and return to the fridge to strain for 2 to 4 days. Most of the liquid should be removed to help preserve the shatta longer.

Place strained paste in an airtight jar. Add remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and lemon juice and mix thoroughly. Top with olive oil and seal with the lid. This stores in the fridge just about forever.

Labels: Frugality, Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

Tourshi Makhloot

Tourshi makhloot just means mixed pickles. So, this recipe is very customizeable. I grew up eating this, and we like to eat it. Since we had bits and bobs of various vegetables to use, I decided to make it for us. However, I think there are things that must be in it, things that should be in it and things that may be.

There must be: Carrots, cauliflower, cucumbers, onion, sweet peppers.

There should be: Celery, hot peppers, salt packed or brined olives, and turnips.

There may be: Beets, cabbage, or green beans.

You need to wash all the vegetables, but you must peel carrots, onions, turnips, and beets. Ideally, your onions will be little pearl onions, but we don't often have them, so I use slices about 1/4" thick.

If you like, you may include turmeric in the brine. Don't do this if you are adding beets to the mix. The color will be awful. Turmeric is not essential, and I usually leave it out, but it is traditional in many quarters. If you use beets, do not use turmeric; if you use turmeric, do not use beets. Neither are essential, though. However, if you do not have celery to add to the mix, you can add some celery seed instead, as I describe below. Normally, I would have included coriander seeds, but since Jerome can't have that right now, I left it out of this batch. This recipe makes about four quarts of mixed pickles. Any extra vegetables can be put in a jar on the counter with the brine and an appropriate amount of the spices and herbs in it; cover it with the lid and turn the mix around for a week or so, then put in the refrigerator to eat right away. Any extra brine can be kept in the fridge and used for other pickles or added to salad dressing.

6 pounds of mixed vegetables, scrubbed, peeled if necessary, chopped into similar sized pieces, leaving small hot peppers whole
1/2 cup pickling salt
about 2 trays of ice cubes or equivalent
Brine:
6 cups white vinegar
3 cups water
1 tablespoon turmeric (optional)

For each jar:
3 cloves garlic, peeled (12 total)
2 heads fresh dill (8 total)
1 dry, hot chile (4 total)
1 teaspoon peppercorns (4 total)
1 teaspoon mustard seed (4 total)
1 teaspoon celery seed, if you don't have celery, if you do, exclude this (4 total)
1 teaspoon coriander seed (4 total)

Layer chopped vegetables in a large bowl and toss with the pickling salt. Cover with the ice and let sit at room temperature for about 4 hours.

In a large pot, bring vinegar, water, and turmeric (if using), to a boil. Keep hot at a low boil.

Drain vegetables well (do not rinse, you need the salt). Place the garlic, spices and herbs into the hot, sterilized jars. Pack salted vegetables into hot quart jars. Ladle hot brine over the vegetables, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Using a thin knife, or skewer, poke down through the jars to release air bubbles. Wipe rims and cover with new lids. Screw on rings to finger tightness, not too tightly, just enough to keep the lids on before they are sealed.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Cool upright, remove rings and check seals, and store without the rings. They will be ready to eat in about 2 weeks.

Labels: Frugality, Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

We were talking about how so many Americans really don't seem to know what to do with an eggplant. Our kids are excited when they see eggplant, but I know that most people either are perplexed or repulsed by them here. I think Americans tend not to cook them enough. There can be crispness to them from frying or roasting, but there should never be crunch on the inside. They should be soft and silky, otherwise, they will be too astringent. Anyway, I thought I'd give you some ideas on what to do, all in one place.

We had about eight eggplant left in our fridge (after using about eight or nine already) because of our gleaning club last week, so I took the time to make caponata, as it freezes so well and can be made into so many meals. I use it as a pasta sauce on abstinent days, it can be a side dish with grilled or fried sausages, I add it to lasagne, you can brown up ground beef or Italian sausage and add it to it for a meat sauce. We froze two gallons of it. The other thing I made was Baba Ghanooj. Rich was really wanting some, and even though Jerome can't enjoy it right now, I made it. Between the two of those, we made short work of those eggplant. Here is how I made the caponata:

Caponata

6 medium sized eggplant, cubed
6 zucchini or summer squash, sliced
3 large sweet peppers, cut into chunks
6 tablespoons capers, drained
3 dozen kalamata or green olives, pitted
3/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 28-ounce cans chopped tomato (or equivalent amount fresh tomatoes, chopped, with all their juices collected and saved)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/2 cup basil leaves, chopped
6 stalks celery, thinly sliced
3 red onions, finely chopped
12 cloves garlic, minced
olive oil
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
chopped parsley, to garnish

Lightly season eggplant cubes with salt, set aside.

In a large pan heat olive oil then pan fry eggplant cubes until they are turn golden on each side. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Add additional olive oil to the pan, then sauté onion, peppers and celery. Add summer squash and brown slightly.

Add the garlic, and cook a minute or two. Add oregano, basil, red wine vinegar, capers, olives and chopped tomato. Bring to a boil, then add fried eggplant and simmer for 15 minutes on low heat.

Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper then garnish with chopped parsley.

There are so many ways you can make eggplant, though. I like to just shallow fry slices, crisply, and eat them salted. You can get fancy and fry them in garlic oil with chile peppers, too. I like to make a green curry with shrimp or chicken and eggplant. Also, I roast eggplant, peppers, onions, summer squash, seasoned with salt and pepper, garlic and oregano, and toss them with balsamic vinegar and olive oil and top flat breads or pizza dough with it and bake. Here is a list of my recipes and other recipes that I love which feature eggplant:

• Eggplant Gyros
• Tomato and Eggplant Sauce So, somehow, I ended up sharing this recipe on the blog twice. It really is that good, but this is the better written version.
• Mediterranean Braised Vegetables
• Eggplant and Chickpea Curry
• Melanzane al Forno
• Slow Cooker Ratatouille (plus summer squash)
• Zaalouk It has a typo, you should cut the eggplant in 3/4” slices. I add a couple teaspoons of minced ginger with the onions and garlic. You can substitute parsley for the cilantro if you like.
• Maghmoor
• Chickpea Salad with Za'atar Fried Eggplant
• Caramelized Onion and Eggplant Pastry Tart
• Eggplant "Meatballs" I put far more parsley and basil in it than they recommend, just because we have it and I like fresh herbs, and I don’t put Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, just plain. We make our own sauce with canned, diced tomatoes, and canned tomato sauce, sautéing the garlic first, then adding the tomatoes and tomato sauce, stirring in a spoonful of pesto I've made before (I freeze it in ice cube trays and then bag them up for later use), dried oregano, salt and pepper, red pepper flakes, and fresh basil and parsley at the end.
• Thai Ginger Chicken
• White Bean and Eggplant Gratin I double everything, use cannelini beans instead of navy, increase the eggplant from two large (for a doubled recipe) to five small, I use one can (instead of two, because of all the liquid) of crushed tomatoes and I use panko instead of regular bread crumbs, but mix them with a little olive oil before putting on top.
• Eggplant Tomato Gratin with Mint, Feta and Kalamata Olives

Labels: Frugality, Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen

We did loads of preserving this week. Between our gleaning club and a homeschool family selling their garden produce at $0.50 a pound, we are overflowing with good things. I made and froze a few gallons of caponata, made a few basil, garlic and olive oil cubes to freeze, canned peaches, made peach jelly and butter, crabapple jelly, some peach and raspberry preserves, dried apple slices and tomatoes, and made loads of dill pickles and bread and butter pickles. The dills cost us under a dollar per quart, which is a dollar cheaper than even at the Grocery Outlet and larger by eight ounces, and the bread and butters cost under a dollar per pint, which is about $0.50 cheaper than the Grocery Outlet for an equivalent amount, only made how I like them. We go through pickles quickly, so we will still have to buy them this winter, but we will spend less on them now. If I keep getting cucumbers from this family, I will also be able to put up more.

Spicy Garlic Dill Pickles

This is how we like pickles. The grape leaf helps keep them crisp, so I strongly recommend them, but you can leave them out if you don't want or have them. I usually have Rich or one of the kids packing the hot jars while I prep the lids and rings and the brine. This quanity of brine will make about 4 quarts of pickles. Any extra brine can be kept in the fridge and used for other pickles or added to salad dressing.

Brine:
4 cups white vinegar
4 cups water
1/4 cup pickling salt

6 pounds small pickling cucumbers, washed
4 young grape leaves (optional)
8 cloves garlic, peeled
4 - 8 dried red peppers
4 fresh dill heads or 4 tablespoons dill seeds
4 teaspoons peppercorns

Put all brine ingredients in a large pot and bring to a boil. Keep hot at a low boil.

Trim very thin slice off both ends of cucumbers. Pack one grape leaf, 2 cloves garlic, 1 - 2 red peppers, 1 dill head or 1 tablespoon dill seeds, 1 teaspoon peppercorns in the bottom of each hot quart jar. Pack about 1 1/2 pounds cucumbers into each jar, tightly.

Fill with boiling brine, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Leave to seal on their own (I trust them with this much vinegar and salt, and it keeps them crisper, but you may not want to do that) or use boiling water bath for 5 - 10 minutes. They will be ready to eat in about 6 weeks.

Half Sweet Bread and Butter Pickles

I didn't grow up with these, so when I saw how syrupy the normal recipes were for them, I wasn't keen on that. I add lots of onions and a bit of spice, and reduce the sugar by quite a lot. That is more like bread and butter for me. I use the larger pickling cucumbers, that aren't quite as good whole, for these, but are perfect cut into slices. This recipe yields about 10 - 12 pints. Any extra vegetables can be put in a jar on the counter with the brine; cover it with the lid and turn the mix around for a week or so, then put in the refrigerator to eat right away. Any extra brine can be kept in the fridge and used for other pickles or added to salad dressing.

5 pounds pickling cucumbers, washed, ends trimmed, and cut into 1/4" slices
3 pounds onions, peeled and cut into 1/4" slices
3/4 cup pickling salt
about 2 trays of ice cubes or equivalent
1/4 cup whole mustard seeds
1 tablespoon hot pepper flakes
1 tablespoon celery seeds

Brine:
6 cups apple cider vinegar
5 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon turmeric

Layer sliced cucumbers and onions in a large bowl and toss with the pickling salt. Cover with the ice and let sit at room temperature for about 4 hours.

In a large pot, bring vinegar, water, sugar and turmeric to a boil. Keep hot at a low boil.

Drain vegetables well (do not rinse, you need the salt) and toss with the mustard seeds, hot pepper flakes and celery seeds. Pack spiced vegetables into hot pint jars. Ladle hot brine over the vegetables, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Using a thin knife, or skewer, poke down through the jars to release air bubbles. Wipe rims and cover with new lids. Screw on rings to finger tightness, not too tightly, just enough to keep the lids on before they are sealed.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. Cool upright, remove rings and check seals, and store without the rings. They will be ready to eat in about 3 weeks.

Labels: Frugality, Homemaking, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Tales from the Kitchen